Tuition

There is a major issue sweeping public universities across the nation, and it’s hitting the safe, tucked away campus of Washington State University particularly hard. Due to a $2.5 billion dollar gap in the state budget (as reported in the Daily Evergreen on the 19th), WSU has been targeted to lose millions of dollars in the coming years. It goes without saying that tuition is in a position to increase, financial aid will be unequivocally decreased and departments/jobs will be cut/lost. In other words: tuition will rise while financial aid and services will decrease. Students and faculty have responded predictably, initiating movements which will protest WSU budget cuts of any sort and ask that other programs and projects across the state hit the cutting board instead. But perhaps the issue isn’t the decrease in state funding towards higher education, but is instead that higher education has lost its focus and vision. Maybe it’s time we realize that universities have become a reflection of the flaws residing in our nation as a whole – it’s an inefficient, overly expensive luxury that has overstepped its original boundaries.

Like all other institutions of higher learning, Washington State University should be focusing on educating its inhabitants and developing the leaders of tomorrow in an intellectually stimulating environment. And yet, many universities today feel less and less like an educational establishment, but more and more like private, exclusive wealthy communities designed to pamper and cater to the needs of its residents.

Take a look at the Student Recreation Center. It’s a marvelous facility, and it (along with the respective programs affiliated with the center) does a number of great things for the community. They employ students, prioritize fitness for its customers and provide a great entertainment outlet for Cougars. But to say it’s an effective use of resources would be an exaggeration of the truth, to say the least. Surveys consistently show that less than 10% of the student body uses the Rec Center weekly, and less than half go more than a couple times a semester. So why is every student charged a couple hundred dollars every semester in addition to the piece of the pie they take from the university budget by paying staff and administrative expenses. What if a “Rec Pass” was available for individual purchase, similar to the optional sports pass available for optionally every semester? There are three independent, third-party fitness center businesses here in Pullman, it would be refreshing to see students given a financial choice on where they’d like to work out – and spend their own money appropriately.

I’m sure we can each think of other non-academic, arguably non-essential spending around campus, such as paying our lower level student government representatives (ASWSU senators – I’m looking at you) for a job which already benefits with experience and resume impression, having multiple radio stations despite low audience rates and perpetuating inefficient use of resources.

At the heart and core of the issue contains the changing mindset of universities today. Colleges are no longer a pure, wholesome sanctuary of intellectual growth and development. They are now a bureaucratic, public supported business which prioritizes revenue over genuine, individual education. In fact, a public university is the perfect industry to work in, since society insists a college degree equates to a broad level of success – it’s quite possibly most secure trade in the world today. Outside of a house or small business (levels some people never reach), a college degree is the most expensive investment one will make in the world we live in today – all for a piece of paper that continuously, exponentially outpaces inflation in its cost. In order to constantly attract the best “customers” and increase prestige, colleges fund programs completely unrelated to academics and research – such as athletics, campus beautification, recruiting and advertising. This causes the university to feel like a luxury resort – with a couple hours of homework thrown in here and there. Predictably, current and past students in addition to tax payers are forced to foot the bill on these non-academic endeavors.

Instead of complaining that tax payers can no longer afford to foot the $700 million dollar budget of the university, maybe it’s time for the universities to reconsider their priorities and intentions. Why does the public hear more about athletic achievements and administrative/faculty turmoil and gossip instead of research results and grant funding? Why do coaches and non-academic positions routinely earn up to ten or twenty times more than the professors/instructors – individuals “customers” (students) interact with on a daily basis? Universities should realign their perspectives to their original purpose – to educate and prepare the leaders of tomorrow for success, rather than allowing this never ending spiral of increasing cost to continue.